As the 2027 general elections draw closer, the ‎British Deputy High Commissioner to Nigeria, Gill Lever, has taken a definite position.

Contrary to rumours in some quarters, Lever said the British government does not have any preferred candidate in Nigeria’s 2027 general elections.

‎She further said that the British government would not interfere in the conduct of the elections, stressing that the country would be interested in free, peaceful, and credible elections. Lever stated this in Ilorin while paying a courtesy visit to the Kwara state governor and Chairman, Nigeria’s Governors’ Forum (NGF), AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, at Government House, Ilorin.

‎‎The Deputy British High Commissioner Lever was on a three-day official visit to Kwara State.

‎‎She said the British Government would support free, peaceful, and credible elections in Nigeria next year, adding that Downing Street has no favourite political party and will not be seen interfering in local political matters.

“The British Government would support a free, peaceful, and credible election in Nigeria next year,” she said.

“Downing Street has no favourite political party and will not be seen interfering in local political matters.

“We all want to see elections that are peaceful, that are inclusive, and that are credible, with space for participation and with respect for institutions.”

The British envoy added, “The British government, as you’ll understand, Excellency, is entirely neutral. We do not favour one party or another, and we would never be in the business of telling Nigerian people how to vote.

“But peaceful and credible elections, of course, are not only a democratic objective. This is not only about the Commonwealth values and the values of democracy that we’ve long shared; they’re also an economic objective or imperative as well,” she stressed.

In his response, the state governor, AbdulRazaq, said his administration has turned around the fortunes of the state, with significant progress made in different sectors of the economy.

“We have made significant progress in different sectors of the economy: from health, education, agriculture, and road infrastructure. When we came in 2019, things just weren’t working in the state.

“From backlogs of pensions and gratuities to payment of half-salaries to the blacklist of Kwara by the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC),” he said, countering earlier narratives by some opposition elements.

“When we came in, 99% of schools did not have WASH facilities and no fencing of schools; teachers were, in fact, owed months in salary arrears. Today, we are up-to-date in investment in basic education with payment of counterpart funds to the UBEC.

“We have expanded access to education and healthcare, and we are making prompt payment of salaries as well as improving the welfare of the workforce. We have cleared the backlog of salaries we met. In fact, we are planning to raise the minimum wage again this year to N100,000.”

AbdulRazaq explained that his administration’s investment in education and health sectors has yielded positive results with improved ratings of the sectors and expansion of access to education and health care delivery.

“We have expanded access to university education with the completion of two campuses of KWASU in Kwara North and South. Then, by the time we leave office by 2027, Kwara will have five teaching hospitals to bridge the shortage of manpower in the health sector,” AbdulRazaq said.

On agriculture, the governor said President Bola Tinubu’s administration is encouraging farming activities, and the state has established a Shea processing factory in Kaiama, which will be the second largest in Nigeria when it becomes operational.

He also spoke extensively on security issues, breaking down the efforts of the state government with other stakeholders to stem breaches and make rural communities safer.

Lever’s team also visited the Kwara state First Lady, Okufolake AbdulRazaq, in her office in Ilorin.